Hero For the Asking

by Gina Wilkins

  * * *

  "I love you, Spring."

  "I love you, too. Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

  "I did. I told you Monday."

  "But you haven't said it since."

  "That's because I was waiting for you to say it."

  Spring giggled. "God, we sound like teenagers."

  He moved sinuously on top of her, bare skin sliding against bare skin as they lay in her bed. "Funny, I don't feel like a teenager."

  Her eyes darkened and grew heavy. "No. No, you certainly don't. Oh, Clay."

  * * *

  Clay laughed softly, the movement vibrating his damp chest below her cheek. She lifted her head and looked at him curiously, her body gradually recovering from their intense, mind-shattering lovemaking. "What's so funny?"

  "I was just thinking that I finally understand why Derek kept threatening to break my arm every time I put it around Summer when he first fell in love with her. It really brings out the caveman in a guy to see his woman looking so cozy with another man."

  Remembering Clay's possessive reaction to Roger, Spring smiled and shook her head. "Derek's gotten over those jealous urges. You will, too."

  "I suppose. But I still don't like other guys kissing you," he warned her semiseriously. "Especially old boyfriends."

  "Now you know how I felt when Jessica started checking out the fit of your tight pants at Connie's party."

  That piqued his interest. "Is that right?"

  "I wanted to scratch her eyes out. And that's the first time in my life I ever wanted to do physical injury to another person. Other than you, of course."

  "Of course." He cuddled her closer, his hand making lazy circles on her back. "These feelings between men and women are very complicated, aren't they? Overwhelming. Even scary sometimes."

  "You're the psychologist. You should understand them," she replied, trying to keep the conversation light.

  He shook his head. "It's different reading cases in books and actually experiencing the situations oneself. A few months ago I would have said that jealousy was counterproductive and unhealthy, that rational, clear-thinking adults did not waste time indulging in such negative emotions. I still believe that, and yet I wanted to rip off Roger's lips when they touched your face. So much for all that training."

  "You're human. Clay. You managed to overcome your impulse and behave quite properly. You even had a very nice conversation with Roger before we left tonight."

  "Well, he's not such a bad guy. A little dull, maybe, but Cathy will liven him up a bit. He wouldn't have been right for you, Spring."

  "I know, darling. You're the one who's right for me. Exactly right for me."

  "I love you."

  "I love you, Clay."

  He twisted until he was leaning over her. "Feel up to showing me again? I find myself still in need of reassurance."

  She opened her arms to him, eager to find her own reassurance in his arms. Their future was still uncertain, but at least she knew now that he did love her. Surely their love could overcome any other obstacles that might lie ahead for them.

  * * *

  "C'mon, Spring. Rise and shine. We're wasting sightseeing time."

  Spring opened one eye, looked at the clock, noted that it was just seven in the morning and closed the eye with a loud groan. "Go away."

  "No, really, sweetheart. By the time you shower and we have breakfast, it will be eight. You told me that it takes about forty minutes to get to Hot Springs, which will make it almost nine o'clock. We'll do some of the outdoor sights this morning before it gets too hot—God, it gets hot in Arkansas in July!—then we'll do indoor things until it cools off a bit. Museums, bathhouse tours, and so on. Spring, are you listening?"

  "I'm sleeping."

  "Don't make me have to tickle you, my love."

  She opened that eye again, looking warily at him. "You wouldn't."

  He held his hand over her bare side, fingers wiggling in mock threat. "Wouldn't I?"

  She sighed and rolled over. "You win. Ill get up. Oh, God, you even look like a tourist. All you need is a camera slung around your neck."

  "It's waiting in the living room," he replied happily, glancing down at his green T-shirt emblazoned with the words Arkansas Is A Natural, his khaki hiking shorts and his white tennis shoes.

  "How come when I made my first visit to California, all I did was shop and visit my sister, and you come to Arkansas and try to memorize the state?"

  "You just haven't learned the fine art of touristry," he answered with a grin. "Up, up, up. I'll be studying the history of the hot springs while you're showering. Did you know that they were used in healing rituals by the Indians and that Al Capone and Bugsy Siegel used to take the baths there on a regular basis?"

  "No, but I'm sure I'll know all that and more by the end of the weekend." Spring climbed out of bed and brushed her hair out of her face, yawning. After getting so little sleep during their particularly active night, she was having a hard time keeping up with her exuberant lover. Not that she minded. She thought he was cute when he was in tourist mode.

  She hummed in the shower, taking her time despite Clay's schedule. She intended to enjoy every moment of the weekend with him. Dressed in white shorts and a lemon-yellow top, she tossed a few things into an overnight bag and was ready for the weekend. All she had to do was drop Missy off with Mrs. English, who'd taken care of the cat while Spring was in California and was very fond of the pet.

  Still humming softly, she went off in search of Clay. She found him in the living room, talking on the telephone. She paused in the doorway, realizing that he hadn't heard her approach. She didn't intend to eavesdrop, but she didn't want to disturb him, so she stood quietly for a moment, thinking he would notice her at any time.

  "Okay, Frank," he was saying, his back still turned to her. "Gather it all up and hang on to it for me. I'll look it over when I get back. When? Oh, the week after next. Monday or Tuesday, at the latest. Yeah, I'm having fun. See you in a week, Frank."

  Spring was back in her room before he'd cradled the receiver, her hand pressed to her stomach as if that would help the pain. She hadn't expected to hear him calmly making plans to return to California. He hadn't said a word to her about it. Sure, he'd told her when he'd arrived that he was here for a couple of weeks, but that had been before he'd told her that he loved her.

  She'd thought that he would ask her to go with him when he decided to leave.

  Pacing blindly around the room, she stumbled, then picked up the stuffed bear that had gotten under her feet. Holding him cradled to her chest, she stood in one spot, rocking slightly as she tried to tell herself that she wasn't breaking into pieces.

  Be realistic, Spring. You knew he was only here on vacation. It was ironic, she thought with bitter humor, that their relationship had begun with a vacation fling—hers—and seemed to be ending with a vacation fling—his. No wonder he hadn't wanted to talk about their future. He didn't foresee one. At least not together.

  Maybe he would still ask her to go with him, she thought on a surge of hope. And then shook her head in answer to her own thoughts. No. He surely would have said something to her before calmly making plans to leave.

  Maybe he wasn't planning to end their relationship when he left. Perhaps he envisioned a long-distance affair—phone calls, letters, an occasional vacation together in California or Arkansas. Of course she knew where that would lead. Heartbreak. She didn't want to be separated from him. She didn't want to lie alone at night wondering whom he was with, what he was doing. She wanted to be his wife. She wanted to have his children. She wanted him!

  "I'm having fun," he'd told Frank. Fun? He considered a full-scale love affair fun? Fine. She'd keep it that way for him. She'd told him goodbye before; she could do it again. She could live with a functioning machine where her heart was now. Because he would surely take her heart with him when he left.

  It hurt. It hurt so much. But she wouldn't let him know. She refused to part badly wi
th him again. She had him for another week, and she intended to create a lot of memories with him during that time. She would need them later.

  "Spring, aren't you ready yet? Oh, there you are." Clay paused in the doorway and eyed her quizzically. "You planning to take the bear? It's fine with me, but I don't know if he's up to all the walking I plan to do. He looks kind of old."

  She straightened her shoulders and forced a smile, setting Pooh back in his new spot on her bedroom floor. "I was just telling him to behave himself while we're gone. Is breakfast ready?"

  "Yep. You have a choice of Raisin Bran and toast or Frosted Mini Wheats and toast."

  "I'll have the Mini Wheats." She started past him, only to be stopped by his hand on her arm.

  "Spring, are you all right?" he asked her, intently searching her face. "You look kind of funny."

  She lifted an eyebrow. "Did you just call me funny looking?" she asked him in teasing challenge, hoping her smile would fool him.

  He chuckled. "Of course not. I just wondered if anything was bothering you."

  "I'm always like this when I'm roused from my bed at dawn after a strenuous night to face a breakfast of cold cereal and toast," she assured him airily. "To be followed by a long weekend of sight-seeing with the quintessential tourist."

  "We're going to have a great time today," he assured her, looping his arm around her neck. "Trust me."

  Trust him? The man who could—and probably would—break her heart? Okay, she'd trust him. For one more week, anyway.

  "I love you, Spring," he murmured as they entered the kitchen.

  "I love you, too, Clay." She was quite proud that she adequately hid the fact that her heart had already started to break as she spoke.

  * * *

  During the weekend Spring discovered that she was actually grateful for Clay's fascination with discovering new sights. He kept her much too busy to worry about the following week. They walked and played, climbed and explored, dined and danced until they were both barely able to crawl into bed Saturday evening, too tired even to make love. Though she'd expected to have a perfectly miserable day, she had a wonderful time, finding the fortitude somehow to push her problems to the back of her mind. She was with the man she loved; he was enjoying himself immensely. She couldn't be sad under those conditions. She even slept soundly and dreamlessly, waking to Clay's hand on her thigh, his mouth on her breast. She returned his lovemaking fiercely, determined to wring every ounce of satisfaction from her time with him.

  "Spring, are you quite sure there's nothing wrong?" Clay asked her when he'd recovered part of his strength.

  "I'm sure," she lied solemnly, kissing his shoulder.

  He knew her too well to accept the words so easily, but he seemed to sense her wish for him to drop the subject. Perhaps he, too, wanted to make the most of the remaining week.

  "In that case, let's get with it. I want to spend today at Magic Springs Amusement Park," he informed her breezily, climbing out of bed and heading for the shower.

  Spring surreptitiously wiped away the tears she hadn't allowed him to see and ordered her mouth to smile. She decided that Summer wasn't the only Reed sister who'd been blessed with dramatic talent.

  "Spring?"

  "Okay, I'm hurrying," she assured her impatient lover, rushing to join him in the shower.

  Chapter Twelve

  "So what's Clay doing today? Memorizing the history of central Arkansas? Following the De Soto Trail along the Saline River through Benton? Counting the number of C-130 transport planes on the Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville?" Kelsey grinned as she listed the possibilities on Tuesday afternoon in Spring's office.

  Spring shook her head. "He's meeting with a local psychologist he read about in the paper last week. A man who works with troubled kids in their own homes. Clay called him yesterday and they talked for a long time, then set up this meeting for today."

  "Got a real talent for meeting people, doesn't he? I couldn't believe how well he fit in at Gordon's on Friday. It was like he'd known the gang for years."

  "Yes, he's very good with people." Spring completed a report, signed it and handed it to Kelsey. "There you go. All finished."

  "Okay, I'll take care of it." Kelsey paused, frowning a bit, then asked carefully, "Is anything wrong, Spring?"

  "No, why do you ask?" The lie was coming easier all the time.

  "No reason. It's just that you've looked, I don't know, kind of sad since you came in yesterday morning after your weekend in Hot Springs. I hope you're not having problems with Clay. The two of you seem so good together."

  "No, Kelsey, we're not having problems." And they weren't. They were getting along fine. But Clay still hadn't bothered to mention that he was leaving in only a few days. Her hope had slowly dwindled and finally fizzled out completely. If he'd been planning to ask her to marry him and move with him to California, he would surely have done so by now. He was leaving in less than a week.

  And still she'd managed to hide her pain from him. She must be a much better actress than she'd ever suspected.

  * * *

  Clay was on the telephone again when she walked into her apartment after work. Again she had the impression that he was talking to Frank. He saw her this time as soon as she entered the room, stopped whatever he was saying in midsentence, then went on with a few vague, general remarks that could mean anything before hanging up.

  "Just checking on things in San Francisco," he explained.

  "How are things in San Francisco?" Maybe now he would tell her his plans, she thought.

  "Oh, just fine," he answered uninformatively. "Hey, did I tell you I heard from Thelma a couple of weeks ago?"

  "No, you didn't. How is she?" He was putting her off again. Why?

  "She's doing great. She's crazy about her aunt and she's being tutored this summer so that she'll be ready for tenth grade this fall. She's in music classes and she's made a couple of friends—and she assures me they're nice kids who won't lead her into more trouble. I've got a lot of hope for that kid."

  "She owes a great deal to you, Clay."

  He flushed unexpectedly and shrugged. "Just doing my job."

  His job? He'd never made a penny from his work at Halloran House, where he'd met Thelma, and she knew it. She smiled at his modesty.

  "You haven't even kissed me yet," Clay told her suddenly. "C'mere."

  After the kiss her arms remained around him, tightening compulsively as she held him. She never wanted to let him go.

  Clay returned the hug with enthusiasm, then held her away from him. "What did I do to deserve that?"

  "I love you," she told him, unable to smile.

  "I love you, too." He kissed her again, then laughed and turned her toward the kitchen, keeping his arm snugly around her waist. "Let's find something to eat before we get distracted and miss dinner again. I'm starving."

  Slipping into the determinedly lighthearted mood that she was rapidly becoming an expert at assuming, she matched her steps to his. "How did your meeting With Dr. Random go today? Are you still intrigued by his new method?"

  "Very much so. I had a few suggestions to make that he seemed to like, and we had an informal consultation on a couple of kids he's been treating lately—no names, of course. We managed to preserve his confidentiality. We're having lunch tomorrow."

  She looked up at him in surprise. "You must really be interested in this man's work."

  "Of course I am. It's the same work as mine," he answered logically, smiling as he released her to open the refrigerator door and peer hopefully inside.

  He must be missing his work very much, Spring thought sadly, if he was spending so much time just talking about another man's job. He must be looking forward to getting home.

  Oh, good, Spring. Why don't you twist the knife a little harder? she asked herself impatiently. Deciding abruptly to make some iced tea, she reached into the cabinet for tea bags, groaning when her sudden move bumped her elbow into the sugar bowl on the counter.
Sugar spilled across the counter and onto the tile floor at her feet in a glistening white stream. "Damn."

  Without pausing a beat Clay leaped into the puddle of sugar on the floor and began to do a soft-shoe routine, whistling "Tea for Two" as he slid the toe of his sneaker through the white powder. Spring had to laugh as she pulled out the broom and dustpan, shaking her head at his antics. God, she was going to miss him!

  * * *

  Kelsey acted oddly on Thursday. Spring asked twice if her friend was ill or troubled about something, but Kelsey only looked mysterious and shook her dark head, her brown eyes twinkling with mischief. Even Andi kept eyeing Spring with a secretive smile that was making her decidedly nervous. What was going on, anyway?

  She found out right after lunch. She'd just finished with a patient and walked out into the hallway to find Clay waiting for her. He grabbed her and kissed her, right in front of Kelsey and Andi, before she could speak.

  When he released her, she frowned at the expressions on the three faces grinning at her. "What's going on? What are you doing here, Clay?"

  "I'm kidnapping you for the afternoon," he informed her. "Get your purse."

  She sighed. "Clay, I have appointments this afternoon. I can't just leave."

  "Wrong," Andi told her. "You're quite free this afternoon."

  "Are you crazy? I looked at the calendar this morning. The afternoon was booked."

  "All the appointments have been rescheduled to the patients' satisfaction," Kelsey informed her smugly. "You're going to be working a few extra hours tomorrow and Monday to make up for it, but you're off for the rest of the day. Enjoy."

  Spring narrowed her eyes at Clay, who was looking innocently back at her. He was wearing disreputable jeans and a Mickey Mouse T-shirt, and even the mouse looked blandly conspiratorial to her suspicious eyes. "Clay, what are you planning?"